Set Free
by MCTechnicKitties
Summary: Katniss and Peeta - Post Mockingjay- Will not be posted weekly. Be nice. This if my first Fan Fic... BTW if there are spelling errors, idc.


**This is my first Fan fiction. 2000-2500 words per chapter. Will not be uploaded weekly. Before reading: forget everything you know about Mockingjay's epilogue. None of that exists. Now you need to realize that there is a reason I am telling you to forget. **

I clutch the pearl as tight as I can without breaking my fingers. My hunting jacket and my two bows are up in the room where Prim slept. Prim. I start crying. I almost press the button on the shiny, silver communicuf that tells Peeta and Haymich to be by my side, I may be considered mentally insane after that month in a padded room because I was crying and screaming for Prim, but I am positive Haymich is dead drunk and Peeta is busy at the bakery. The main reason -that I believe- I'm insane is that I'm still living in the victor village. The gate has been taken down and most people call it expensive housing, but to me it's still the victor village. I still get the nightmares I have been trying to push away. For so long I've had these nightmares. But only for so long have I had Peeta. If I had Peeta from the start of the nightmares this wouldn't be happening, maybe… great. He probably thinks less of me. I'm not the same. It's like the war hijacked me. Seeing Peeta want to commit suicide. But that wasn't Peeta. But it was but it wasn't. Now my logic doesn't even make sense. I should go check back into that padded room. Maybe I shouldn't be living. I should have shot Snow. Right there. I'd probably be living in the capitol, not under Paylor but under Coin. I like Paylor. Coin tried to kill me. She hated me. This happens to much. I ponder for a second. More than a second. I fall asleep on the couch. The white couch. Soft, gentle, couch. Me. I'm Katniss Everdeen. I won the hunger games once. The rebellion started. I was supposed to shoot President Snow. I shot district 13's rebel president. She wanted to kill me. Snow ended up dyeing anyway. I need to sleep.

I wake up to Peeta clutching the back of a chair. I get up and wrap my arms around him. I wait for him to speak. He has Flashbacks. I have nightmares. "Katniss," he says. "Yeah?" I respond. "I love you,' he says. "Real," I say. I can't say "I love you" to anyone. Peeta knows. It relates to Gale too much. And I need Peeta, not Gale. Peeta gets it. I catch a glimpse of his hand. "Oh my god, Peeta!" I say. His hand is Red and Bloody. I take his clean hand and drag him to the sink. "Peeta, what happened?" I ask, scrubbing dirt and frozen blood off his hand. "I ran into these two guys. It was nothing," He says as I take a rag and start cleaning his hand. "Peeta it wasn't 'nothing'. Tell me exactly what happened," I say walking over to the bag that kept all of my mother's extra medical supplies. I dig through it to find bandages. "So these two guys walk over to me and shove me to the ground. I have scratches on my back but nothing serious," he says trying to continue but I say, "Peeta, if you thought your hand was not serious, you were wrong, you broke a couple bones. Show me your back if it was 'nothing serious' also." He continues as he pulls off his shirt, "I got up and they looked serious, I started to walk away, then one of them said, 'going home to your mommy?' and at that point," he says as I clean his back like I did his hand. His back is bloody, but there is no dirt, "I turned around and punched the one guy. The other one came up behind me and shoved my to the ground, I tried to save myself, but it was no use. My hand got scraped up and I decided to walk away. But I turned around and said to them, 'I'm Peeta Melark and my family is dead.' It felt good. But the one guy had a bloody nose." I stare at him, wrapping his hand in bandages. "Peeta, that's the third time you have gotten beat up since you've been back for four months!" he responds, "I know but maybe it's because there's something I'm missing, you know?" I respond to his question, "I understand what you're saying," I really don't but I keep talking, "I mean maybe you're lonely, but that wouldn't make any sense, really." He says, "We need someone _new_. Like _Prim_. Or _Rue."_

He means someone little. Prim. Rue. Both kids. "Peeta," I say, "Not going to happen." He gets a glass of water, "Katniss your pale, dehydrated. Drink," he holds the glass out to me. I take a sip as he says, "Katniss Everdeen, the girl on fire. Marry me." Almost as if he knew I'd drop my glass he dives down to catch it before it hit the ground. Peta fails. Glass implants in my leg. As I watch him running to get a sterile white table cloth and medical supplies, I fall to the floor as I press the button on the communicuf. I hear Peeta's go off up the hall, he ignores it and I also hear gravel being trampled on up the road of the victor village, Haymich. Peeta scoops me up and carries me to the table. As he does so he's whispering, "It's my entire fault. I'm so stupid. She hates me," he sets me down on the table and digs a sterile thread and needle out of the bag. He clutches the back of a chair.

Haymich huffs, "You shouldn't have to do your own stitch-work," Peeta responds, holding my shoulder with his broken hand "but why did you kick the door in?" Haymich counter-attacks, "Why does your hand have a bandage?" Peeta asks, "Why is your hair gold?" I restate his question, "Why _is _your hair gold?" Haymich answers, "Effie, don't ask…" I respond, "She's in the district?" Haymich walks to the kitchen, "Yes, got here this morning. Said something about a broadcast from Plutarch and all of the living victors need to watch it, she figured she should be here today, if she has to be here tomorrow. Got any?" I cut him off, "Far left cupboard. White Rum. Pour me some." Peeta stares at me and says, "Katniss," no alcohol for me, "Never mind, Haymich."

I continue stitching my leg making sure it's perfect because obviously I'm going back on TV. "Did Effie say what the broadcast was about?" I ask. "Nope, she'll be over here in like two minutes though. "Hmm," Effie says as she steps through the socket that was out door, "I haven't seen you two in almost a year!" she says walking towards us, me still stitching my leg and Peeta's hand on my shoulder, "Still loving the gold hair Haymich," Haymich responds, "Oh course you are you only put the dye in this morning." Now approaching me she says, "And you, quite the doctor! Peta save the acting for the cameras. Now," Peeta cuts her off, "I'm not acting. What about the broadcast?" Effie responds, "I was going to get to that, it's about the arenas. That's all I heard at the station leaving the capitol. Plurach was talking to Paylor. Paylor gets out way to much."

Arenas, death, hatred, victors. All of these words cross my mind. "Where is Plurach going?" Effie, "Questions! The broadcast comes on in less than a minute!" she rushed over to the TV spinning the knobs as if she was programmed to do this, "Here we go!" Effie sits down on the couch, Haymich falls into a chair, spilling rum all over it. Peeta stands up from his chair and helps me down. I start to walk but I fall to the ground. Peeta helps me up. He carries me to the couch and puts me in the spot next to Effie. Peeta takes the spot on the couch next to me.

The broadcast starts with the capitol seal burning. "As usual we will start with the people that have died this week. Two deaths, an all-time low. Starting with the first, Tomas Carter. An 80 year-old victor with two children, both were tributes, one a victor, Jack Carter, the other, deceased Lilly Carter. Both fought in the 51st Hunger Games. Next is the 18 year-old, Gale Hawthorne. He has a victorious cousin, Katniss Everdeen." My head finds its way onto Peta's shoulder. Peta puts his arm around me and tears roll down my face. Gale. My friend. The one I believed was my soul mate. But I decided I didn't need Gale. I stop crying and listen to the broadcast, "In other news, there will be a 76th Annual Hunger Games." My heart sinks. I thought I would never see an arena again, "No mutts, no deaths, but lots of time. And the tributes, living victors. They have already been reaped. From District 1, Jay Thomson and Alexia Carlson. District 2, Jack Carter and Enboria. District 3, Beetee and Kylie Ticonderoga. District 4, Lee Peterson and Annie Odair. District 5, Karan Gurse and Flara Jander. District 6, Tyler Gogan and Maddie Callahan. District 7, Vau Nuel and Johanna Mayson. District 8, Parker Mcintire and Star Torok. District 9, Austin Mahone and Redunece Mahone. District 10, Xphin Limon and Belle Binford. District 11, Mandrel Ozola and Bizza Derogorge. District 12, Peeta Melark and Katniss Everdeen." At this I close my eyes and sleep.

I wake up to find Effie cowering in a corner saying, "This is not happening," repeatedly and Haymich and Peeta talking. "What's not happening, Effie?" I ask, she responds, "25 tributes is not happening," Haymich responds to her, "One isn't even of age to be separated from their mother! Effie, get a grip," Effie starts screaming, "GET A GRIP? TO HAVE A REBOUND FROM THE GAMES THEY NEED A REGULAR NUMBER OF TRIBUTES! NOT 25!" I respond, "But last time there were 25… People thought…" Effie calmly speaks, "That was fake, and no one knows it." Still confused I say, "But I'm still not getting this…" Haymich answers, "Annie was pregnant when Finnick went off to the war. Finnick didn't know, neither did Annie, but now they have a son. And Effie wants to make a big deal of it!" Peeta – the only one who hasn't spoken – says, "Who could have anticipated a thing like that? No one, both of you quit going at another, it's not helping. They obviously want something unusual, that's why they picked Annie!" they both know Peeta is right.

"We need to pick an arena," Haymich says. "What?" I ask as we all sit back down in our spots. "Each district picks an arena. The arena will be visited on their spotlight days. A spotlight day is a day a district gets to be special. Like us, Day 14. Day 14, all the tributes will go to the arena we pick. District 1 gets day 3. Simple." We both automatically know our arena. Peeta and I look at each other. He nods in conformation and everyone knows what our arena will be.


End file.
